Commercial Greenhouses are in an entirely different ballpark from normal residential greenhouses such as you might have in your garden.
Here are 10 Tips for Using Commercial Greenhouses:
1. Get Some Proper Walking Shoes!
Some commercial greenhouses are absolutely enormous. For example, there is one commercial greenhouse complex in Spain which is 50,000 acres in size! So if you do need to do horticultural work in a commercial greenhouse, than just be aware that not only will you likely be getting much fitter due to all of the walking, but that plant care in commercial greenhouses is literally on an industrial scale.
2. Start understanding Hydroponics
Unlike their smaller counterparts, commercial greenhouses are set up primarily to maximise crop yield. Because the plants are spread over a much greater area it becomes more difficult to give each plant the care and attention that they really need, and that you could give them in a smaller home-sized greenhouse. So one-way that this is dealt with in commercial greenhouses is with the use of hydroponics, which is where plants are no longer grown in soil, but in mineral rich nutrient solutions.
If you are going to work in commercial greenhouses then you need to understand how this works.
3. Check the Schedule
Because commercial greenhouses are run like military operations you need to know exactly how you fit in to the schedule of operations. There will most likely be many people involved in the care of the plants, and so you must understand exactly what your role and job is in the operation.
4. Learn about artificial pollination
Normally bees do a great job of pollinating plants, and you really don’t have to worry too much about pollination if you only have a small greenhouse. In a commercial greenhouse however pollination is a big deal, and so you need to learn how artificial pollination works in order to ensure that your plants survive.
5. Learn about pest control in the larger commercial greenhouses
In big commercial greenhouses, controlling bugs and pests has been reduced to something akin to a military operation. You need to make sure that you understand exactly how pests and diseases are combatted in the bigger commercial greenhouses if you are to get the most out of using them.
6. Understand wireless sensor systems
Wireless sensor systems are very common in large commercial greenhouses, because the production is very much designed as a business. As such the owners want to understand all of the processes that are being applied to the plants or food that are being grown, and how this affects overall productivity.
So it is useful to get a crash course on wireless sensor systems which are typically how all this information is tracked.
7. Explore the Irrigation Systems
In a small greenhouse this is you with a watering can! But in large commercial greenhouses the systems tend to be on timers, and are controlled from a central system. It is worth looking at the minutiae of how this works if you are looking to buy or work in a commercial greenhouse, because watering the plants properly is massively important.
8. Explore the Heating Systems
Cold plants do not grow! Make sure you understand the way that heating systems work in commercial greenhouses, as there can be considerable differences between them.
9. Compare Growth Levels
If you also have a small greenhouse at home then comparing the growth rates of plants between he two can be instructive as to how to improve yields.
10. Have Fun!
Even commercial greenhouses should be fun! Growing plants is exciting. So make sure you enjoy the growing process regardless of the size of the greenhouse.
Alexandru Chiuariu, Web Content Copywriter of Greenhouses for Sale, providing web copy and articles on the company’s commercial greenhouses and special greenhouses offers.
